Nail enamel compositions (i.e., film-forming nail coatings) such as base coats, top coats, clear nail enamels, pigmented, clear and frost nail enamels, nail menders, and the like utilize nitrocellulose (cellulose nitrate) as the conventional and major film-forming portion thereof.
While generally suitable, nail enamels utilizing nitrocellulose as the film-forming agent tend to yellow since, with time, the nitrocellulose will degrade and turn yellow. This is, of course, undesirable since it causes the nail enamel products to undergo color changes. Efforts to overcome this yellowing problem have not been successful and presently the problem is mainly treated by trying to minimize the time nail enamel products have to remain "on the shelf" before use.
In addition to its yellowing properties, the use of nitrocellulose, because of its high glass transition point, requires the addition of plasticizers to nail enamel compositions. Such plasticizers as camphor, dibutyl phthalate, and the like must be added in significant amounts to the compositions and this acts to complicate formulation in terms of trying to obtain the gloss, wear, viscosity, and other properties desired in nail enamel compositions.
Finally, nitrocellulose is highly flammable and care must be taken by the user when applying nitrocellulose-based nail enamels to ensure that it is not used near an open flame.